This last week we looked at Jesus as a man of Prayer.
Often we allow our prayer life to become ritualistic, something we check off on our spiritual "to do" list.
It was never a "to do" list for Jesus. It was authentic, it was real and it was a way to engage God the Father on this earth.
The cool thing about this lesson is that we can engage the same God right now in our own life. We can call on the creator of the universe to show His power on earth right now. We can call on Him believing, kowing he will intervene. It may not be in our timing and may not be the way we want, but He does intercat in our lives through prayer.
We have to remember, that the way in which we approcah him is important. James 4:3 tells us not to ask with the wrong motives. We learn from Jesus to pray with a pure heart. It is not about us, it is all about God.
One of the problems is that we have gottne good at asking for stuff. Probably 90% of all our prayers are about asking for stuff. We need to spend some time with God building a relationship with Him through prayer. Send this week, telling God about what you have done and what you are going to do. Include Him in your life life this week. Spend some time without sying anything and listen to Him in your Spirit as he leads you through this week.
Let's all change the way we pray. Let's spend some time including God in our everyday life.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Jesus: Man of Warfare
Jesus is a man of warfare, spiritual warfare that is. This past week we saw how Jesus' ministry was centered around the idea that there are two kingdoms in conflict. It is God's kingdom verses the kingdom of the prince of darkness. From the beginning the enemy has fought to keep man from experiencing an authentic relationship with God.
Jesus has won the war, but there are spiritual battles that will continue until Jesus returns. So how does this affect you and me?
Once we discover the reality of the warfare that goes on in the heavenly realm we begin to pray differently and with more intensity. We call on God and his angels to intervene in this battle for lost souls and the advancement of his kingdom.
In Daniel 10 we have a perfect example of spiritual warfare and how prayer can make a difference.
Daniel is confronted with a heavenly being. He had been fasting for twenty-one days when this being came to him. The heavenly being came to let him know his prayer had been heard and he had come in response to Daniels prayer and fasting.
He told Daniel that his prayers had been heard from the first day but he had been detained by the prince of the Persian kingdom. Our first insticnt is to think that the prince of the Persian kingdom is a physical ruler. But the heavenly being said he was detained until Michael, "one of the chief princes, came to help him."
Michael, on of the arch angels intervened in the heavenly realm. The heavenly being tells Daniel, "Do not be afraid . . . Peace! Be strong now; be strong." The heavenly being said that he was going to return to fight the prince of Persia and when he leave, the prince of Greece will come.
This is a perfect description of what goes on in the heavenly realm. So what can we learn from this story in the Bible?
First, spiritual warfare is real. There really is a battle that goes on in the heavenly realm.
Second, our prayer affects the battles that go on in the spiritual realm. This means we need to be persistant, calling on God to fight for us against the spiritual forces of evil. We can not fight this battle on our own, we have to trust God's power because the enemy will do everything he can so that we lose that trust.
Finally, we have to realize there is a battle. As follwers of God we do not need to be passive, we need to be aggrssive with our prayers. And when it gets tough, we need to find peace in God and stand strong.
The encouragement this week is to pray as a warrior fighting against the principalities of this dark world. Pray for people to be healed. Pray for God to intervene. Pray for lost souls. Stop being passive with your prayers.
Pary hard, trust God's word, the kingdom of heaven is at hand and the gates of hell will not prevail!
Jesus has won the war, but there are spiritual battles that will continue until Jesus returns. So how does this affect you and me?
Once we discover the reality of the warfare that goes on in the heavenly realm we begin to pray differently and with more intensity. We call on God and his angels to intervene in this battle for lost souls and the advancement of his kingdom.
In Daniel 10 we have a perfect example of spiritual warfare and how prayer can make a difference.
Daniel is confronted with a heavenly being. He had been fasting for twenty-one days when this being came to him. The heavenly being came to let him know his prayer had been heard and he had come in response to Daniels prayer and fasting.
He told Daniel that his prayers had been heard from the first day but he had been detained by the prince of the Persian kingdom. Our first insticnt is to think that the prince of the Persian kingdom is a physical ruler. But the heavenly being said he was detained until Michael, "one of the chief princes, came to help him."
Michael, on of the arch angels intervened in the heavenly realm. The heavenly being tells Daniel, "Do not be afraid . . . Peace! Be strong now; be strong." The heavenly being said that he was going to return to fight the prince of Persia and when he leave, the prince of Greece will come.
This is a perfect description of what goes on in the heavenly realm. So what can we learn from this story in the Bible?
First, spiritual warfare is real. There really is a battle that goes on in the heavenly realm.
Second, our prayer affects the battles that go on in the spiritual realm. This means we need to be persistant, calling on God to fight for us against the spiritual forces of evil. We can not fight this battle on our own, we have to trust God's power because the enemy will do everything he can so that we lose that trust.
Finally, we have to realize there is a battle. As follwers of God we do not need to be passive, we need to be aggrssive with our prayers. And when it gets tough, we need to find peace in God and stand strong.
The encouragement this week is to pray as a warrior fighting against the principalities of this dark world. Pray for people to be healed. Pray for God to intervene. Pray for lost souls. Stop being passive with your prayers.
Pary hard, trust God's word, the kingdom of heaven is at hand and the gates of hell will not prevail!
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